First Meetings: Of Toads and Tadpoles
by latelydreaming
Summary: A new take on an old trope. An SI's plan to avoid attention works a little too well. Or: In which Jiraiya meets his daughter for the first time under… less than ideal circumstances. (Warnings: OC-SI, slight language, hints of incest, and Jiraiya.)


_**First Meetings: Of Toads and Tadpoles**_

_latelydreaming_

**Author's note: **Yes. I've been bitten by the SI bug. That's what I get for making the mistake of reading _Vixen Tail_'s **Déjà vu no Jutsu** (which is interesting, well-written, and covers many of the plot holes left in canon)... Now I can't seem to stop reading SI's. (_*sigh*_) Sorry (not really) to everyone who hates these fics!

**Disclaimer:** I don't even really own the idea for this fic, much less Naruto itself. If you wanna know the inspiration behind this, check out _cywscross_'s **For Whom the Bell Tolls**.

**Warnings: **Self-Insert, Original Character, slight language, hints of incest, and _Jiraiya_.

* * *

><p>Becoming a ninja had never been among Maika's life goals. Honestly, she'd wanted to be a musician. But that dream had died with her (literally), and she hadn't been given much of a choice. Sure, she'd been reborn in a city where, if she was stubborn enough, she could be anything she wanted to be… as long as she didn't want to be a shinobi, because for all the things Shukuba-machi was, it was <em>not<em> a Hidden Village. And that was fine with her.

Becoming a Self-Insert had _really_ never been among Maika's life goals. Though she hadn't been given a choice in the matter, that didn't mean she had to _do_ anything about it. She could stay here at the brothel with her new mother, working as a serving girl or something, until she was old enough to find a job somewhere else, right? Or at least, that was The Plan. (That plan had lasted just long enough for Suna Shinobi A to nudge Suna Shinobi B, point to her, and say, "Hey, doesn't that kid look an awful lot like–?")

Becoming a Mary Sue had really, _really_ never been among Maika's life goals. After a long, complicated series of events that had involved nosy Suna nin, violent Oto nin, hair dye, face paint, her mother's death, relocation to Konohagakure, a life debt to the Inuzuka clan, enrollment in The Shinobi Academy, studying, training, an unsuccessful Quiet Game, one failed Doctor Who reference, a misdirected prank, and, bizarrely enough, the (re)invention of tacos, Maika had graduated from the Shinobi Academy, somehow becoming _the_ Uzumaki Naruto's sidekick along the way. She was placed on Team 5, a no-name team of extras that was destined to fail and be shuffled back into the Genin Corps. That was also fine with her.

She didn't want to be on one of the flashy, jounin-sponsored genin teams; those teams were destined for front-line combat and infamy. She didn't mind being cannon fodder if it meant she could keep her anonymity. Of course, being in the Genin Corps meant she'd probably never receive any individualized instruction or be promoted above Chuunin and advancement in the ranks would be slow in coming, but thanks to genetics, she was predisposed to have talent in the ninja arts and her rank wasn't a reflection of her real skill level, anyway. Shinobi were known for deception and misdirection, and she kind of liked the idea of being underestimated. Besides, she preferred to be a background character.

Because of her looks, she _really_ hadn't wanted to move to Konoha, but looking back, it was inevitable. At the time, she hadn't known about the resemblance between her and her father–if she had, she would have done a much better job disguising herself–she simply hadn't wanted to see her new appearance. She'd avoided mirrors because she already had a self-image she liked, and she didn't quite want to admit that the cool, confident woman she'd once been was gone, leaving only a fragile little girl in her place. Clearly, that had been a poor decision, but there was no use crying over spilled milk. In Konoha she was safe. She could continue to hide her true features so no one would realize who she was, but if anyone _did_ find her out, she wouldn't be put in danger because of it.

Maika had been here seven years and had yet to be discovered. The only one who knew her real hair color or had seen her face without the concealer covering the markings was Naruto, and though he hadn't understood at the time, he'd promised to keep it quiet. (During the Chuunin Exams, he'd finally figured out the reason for the secrecy, but he was, ironic as it was, a ninja of his word, and had said nothing.)

She'd stayed silent. For _seven years_, she'd stayed silent. She'd gone out of her way to hide her looks, her habits, her preferences, her past, anything that could even _remotely_ link her to her father. She'd avoided him and any who knew him well like the plague, and only recently, when she was sure her looks were feminine enough that people wouldn't mistake her for a younger him, when she was sure he wouldn't be back in the village for a few years, when she was sure his focus was directed somewhere else, had she dared to grow her hair out long like his, to let it fade back into its natural color, to start to act like _herself_ again, to relax and be less paranoid about being discovered. The _only_ reason Maika had taken the risk of running into him now was because she wanted to be the first one to welcome Naruto home since he'd been away so long. She'd tied up her hair, covered it with a hat, dressed in her drabbest, least conspicuous outfit, and donned a large pair of sunglasses to disguise herself. All she had to do was greet Naruto and go before he noticed her; she didn't have to stay or chat or properly _meet_ him, right? Thirty seconds. In and out, that's all.

(Obviously, that had been a mistake.)

Deep breath, shunshin over, and: "Hey, Naruto; welcome hom–"

"Naruto! Why didn't you tell me you knew such a lovely young lady?!" Jiraiya interrupted with a leer.

Naruto choked, and Maika took another deep breath.

_Control yourself. You knew he was like this; it's not his fault he doesn't know–_

"Why, Beautiful, wouldn't you rather give your welcome to a handsome devil like me than that brat over there? I don't have any plans; if you want, we could go over to your place, and get to know each other better…."

Naruto turned green and started spluttering, and Maika… Maika _snapped_.

"You…" her fists clenched, her shoulders trembled, the urge was just too strong to resist–

_**BAM!**_

"YOU SICK, PERVERTED, INCESTUOUS _BASTARD_ OF A FATHER! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU _ARE_, PROPOSITIONING YOUR OWN DAUGHTER LIKE THAT?!"

Jiraiya flew through a nearby wall as Maika's hat and sunglasses slid off from the violence of her punch. Her cheeks were wet…. Oh shit, was she _crying_? Would it wash away the face paint? _What did she just say?_ What should she do?

"Maika-chan?!" Naruto exclaimed in panic, "Maika-chan, are you alright?! He didn't mean it, you know; he does that to every girl. C'mon, don't cry! He's just an insensitive pervert; he didn't mean anything–"

Rubble shifted and Jiraiya reappeared, completely flabbergasted and more than a little worse for the wear.

_ "D-Daughter?"_


End file.
